• =?UTF-8?Q?January_24th_=E2=80=93_St=2E_Babylas?=

    From rich@1:396/4 to All on Thu Jan 23 07:43:36 2020
    From: rich <richarra@gmail.com>

    January 24th =E2=80=93 St. Babylas
    Also known as Babila, Babilas

    Memorial
    24 January in the Latin Church
    4 September in the Greek Church

    St. Babylas lived in the third century. He was Bishop of Antioch and
    much loved by the people. One day the pagan Emperor Numerian ordered
    that a young girl be sacrificed to the idols. She was the daughter of
    a king and had been taken as hostage in a war. After this crime, he
    went to enter the Cathedral of Antioch to mock the Catholics. He was
    met at the door, however, by St. Babylas, who told him: =E2=80=9CStep back, impure and sacrilegious man. You shall not enter here.=E2=80=9D A great hat= red
    for the Prelate filled Numerian.

    Later, he arrested the Bishop with three of his disciples to submit
    them to interrogations at which he was present. During one of them he
    ridiculed the saint saying: =E2=80=9CBy the gods, I suppose that you must
    teach interesting things to the fools of whom you are the master,
    since you have a school.=E2=80=9D

    The Prelate replied: =E2=80=9CYes, I teach wisdom and truth to children. As
    for the fools, they do not attend my school; otherwise you would be there.=E2=80=9D

    After torturing the disciples of St. Babylas, the Emperor went to him, sayi= ng:
    =E2=80=9CListen to me, O master who teaches such stupidities to children. T= his
    time you have lost, for your three students have just finished
    offering sacrifices to the gods.=E2=80=9D

    The man of God fixed his severe glance on him and responded:
    =E2=80=9CYou lie, shameless man. You do this naturally, since you are son o=
    f
    the Devil, the liar par excellence.=E2=80=9D
    The Emperor condemned him to die. As he was being led away, he
    exhorted the people saying: =E2=80=9CAround my neck is a collar of iron and chains. I solemnly exhort you in the name of God to bury them close to
    my body, for one day they will give testimony against this tyrant whom
    the eternal fire awaits.=E2=80=9D After his death St. Babylas was much venerated in the East and many churches were dedicated to him.

    In 363 Emperor Julian the Apostate visited Antioch to offer sacrifices
    to Apollo, whose temple he found abandoned. He asked an old pagan why
    this was so, and the man responded that Apollo no longer gave
    prophecies there because he was disturbed by the presence in that city
    of the remains of one man. It was St. Babylas.

    Julian wanted to take the relics of the saint and send them away. But
    all the inhabitants of the city came in procession in defense of their
    former Bishop singing:

    =E2=80=9CLet them be all confounded that adore graven things, and that glor=
    y
    in their idols. Adore Him, all you His angels. People, bend thy knees
    before the most high Lord over all the earth. He is exalted
    exceedingly above all gods.=E2=80=9D =C2 Julian's plan was frustr=
    ated, and the
    relics of St. Babylas remained in the city.


    Comments of Prof. Plinio:

    It is interesting to see that the physiognomy of this martyr is quite
    different from what is normally presented to us by a certain Romantic
    school of hagiography. This school pictures the martyr always
    forgiving those who are inflicting death on him. This is legitimate,
    of course. It is very noble and beautiful that the martyr at the
    moment he is delivering his life to God, cuts himself off from the
    world around him, even his persecutors, and thinks exclusively of God.
    It is noble of him to forgive and pray for those who are against him.
    Our Lord Himself prayed for the good thief and forgave those who
    inflicted death on him.

    But what is wrong in this school is to imply that if a saint died
    cursing his enemies and condemning the crimes of his adversaries, he
    would not be a true saint. He would not have practiced the virtue of forgiveness and the virtue of love of neighbor. So he would not
    deserve to go straight to Heaven. One can see an implicit censure of
    the action of St. Babylas, who did this, in the fact that his life is
    not well known, and pictures or statues of him are not disseminated.

    This implicit censure, however, contains a doctrinal error. It is
    perfectly legitimate, and in some cases even a duty, to die speaking
    the truth and denouncing the error of the enemies. The life and death
    of St. Babylas are important proofs of this. It is an eminent form of
    sanctity to damage the enemies of the Church and frighten the devils
    even after death.

    There are two grandiose scenes in this description of St. Babylas' =
    life.

    First, the encounter at the Cathedral door. One can imagine, on one
    hand, the Saint stands at the door, stern and indignant. He already
    knows about the crime of the Emperor, and firm and tranquil, he waits
    there. On the other hand, there is the Emperor, who approaches the
    Cathedral surrounded by sycophant courtesans. The Emperor mocks the
    Catholics and all the courtesans are laughing loudly. The Emperor is
    the highest authority on earth, and St. Babylas is a simple Bishop.
    But Babylas is more than Numerian, because he is a saint. The Emperor
    wants to enter, the saint forbids him, and the Emperor is stopped.
    What did he have that made him able to forbid the Emperor to enter? He
    had a thing that is much forgotten today, it is moral strength. His
    presence, his faith, his self-assurance stopped the Emperor from
    making the blasphemy he had planned.

    The second scene is after his death. The devil worshiped under the
    name of Apollo could not communicate with his followers any longer
    because that same moral presence of St. Babylas which had prevented
    the Emperor Numerian from entering the Cathedral was still present
    throughout the city of Antioch, not allowing the devil to give
    oracles. Now, another Emperor, Julian the Apostate, was rendered
    powerless before St. Babylas.

    The personality of St. Babylas was so great that both in his lifetime
    and after his death he was able to overwhelm the most powerful men on
    earth, as well as the devil in Hell.

    Let us ask St. Babylas to give us confidence and faith so that by our
    presence we can prevent the enemies of the Church from carrying out
    their blasphemous and idolatrous intents.

    See Icons at:
    http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j058sdBabylas1-24.htm


    Saint Quote:
    "Do not look forward to what may happen tomorrow.
    The same Everlasting Father, who takes care of you today,
    will take care of you tomorrow.
    He will either shield you from suffering,
    or give you unfailing strength to bear it.
    Be at peace then,
    and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations."
    --Saint Francis de Sales.

    Bible Quote:
    But the wise took oil in their vessels with the lamps. And the
    bridegroom tarrying, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight
    there was a cry made: Behold the bridegroom cometh, go ye forth to
    meet him. =C2 (Matt 25:4-6)


    <><><><>
    Saint Anthony, Zealous for Justice

    Dear St. Anthony, you were prompt to fulfill all justice.
    =C2 You gave God and His creation the service He required
    from you. You respected other people's rights and treated
    them with kindness and understanding. St. Anthony, Zealous
    for Justice, teach me the beauty of this virtue. Make me
    prompt to fulfill all justice toward God and toward all creation.
    =C2 Help me also in my pressing needs. (Name them.)
    --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
    * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)
  • From rich@1:396/4 to All on Sat Jan 23 09:03:00 2021
    From: rich <richarra@gmail.com>

    January 24th =E2=80=93 St. Babylas

    St. Babylas lived in the third century. He was Bishop of Antioch and
    much loved by the people. One day the pagan Emperor Numerian ordered
    that a young girl be sacrificed to the idols. She was the daughter of
    a king and had been taken as hostage in a war. After this crime, he
    went to enter the Cathedral of Antioch to mock the Catholics. He was
    met at the door, however, by St. Babylas, who told him: =E2=80=9CStep back, impure and sacrilegious man. You shall not enter here.=E2=80=9D A great hat= red
    for the Prelate filled Numerian.

    Later, he arrested the Bishop with three of his disciples to submit
    them to interrogations at which he was present. During one of them he
    ridiculed the saint saying: =E2=80=9CBy the gods, I suppose that you must
    teach interesting things to the fools of whom you are the master,
    since you have a school.=E2=80=9D

    The Prelate replied: =E2=80=9CYes, I teach wisdom and truth to children. As
    for the fools, they do not attend my school; otherwise you would be there.=E2=80=9D

    After torturing the disciples of St. Babylas, the Emperor went to him, sayi= ng:
    =E2=80=9CListen to me, O master who teaches such stupidities to children. T= his
    time you have lost, for your three students have just finished
    offering sacrifices to the gods.=E2=80=9D

    The man of God fixed his severe glance on him and responded:
    =E2=80=9CYou lie, shameless man. You do this naturally, since you are son o=
    f
    the Devil, the liar par excellence.=E2=80=9D
    The Emperor condemned him to die. As he was being led away, he
    exhorted the people saying: =E2=80=9CAround my neck is a collar of iron and chains. I solemnly exhort you in the name of God to bury them close to
    my body, for one day they will give testimony against this tyrant whom
    the eternal fire awaits.=E2=80=9D After his death St. Babylas was much venerated in the East and many churches were dedicated to him.

    In 363 Emperor Julian the Apostate visited Antioch to offer sacrifices
    to Apollo, whose temple he found abandoned. He asked an old pagan why
    this was so, and the man responded that Apollo no longer gave
    prophecies there because he was disturbed by the presence in that city
    of the remains of one man. It was St. Babylas.

    Julian wanted to take the relics of the saint and send them away. But
    all the inhabitants of the city came in procession in defense of their
    former Bishop singing:

    =E2=80=9CLet them be all confounded that adore graven things, and that glor=
    y
    in their idols. Adore Him, all you His angels. People, bend thy knees
    before the most high Lord over all the earth. He is exalted
    exceedingly above all gods.=E2=80=9D=C2 Julian's plan was frustr=
    ated, and the
    relics of St. Babylas remained in the city.


    Comments of Prof. Plinio:

    It is interesting to see that the physiognomy of this martyr is quite
    different from what is normally presented to us by a certain Romantic
    school of hagiography. This school pictures the martyr always
    forgiving those who are inflicting death on him. This is legitimate,
    of course. It is very noble and beautiful that the martyr at the
    moment he is delivering his life to God, cuts himself off from the
    world around him, even his persecutors, and thinks exclusively of God.
    It is noble of him to forgive and pray for those who are against him.
    Our Lord Himself prayed for the good thief and forgave those who
    inflicted death on him.

    But what is wrong in this school is to imply that if a saint died
    cursing his enemies and condemning the crimes of his adversaries, he
    would not be a true saint. He would not have practiced the virtue of forgiveness and the virtue of love of neighbor. So he would not
    deserve to go straight to Heaven. One can see an implicit censure of
    the action of St. Babylas, who did this, in the fact that his life is
    not well known, and pictures or statues of him are not disseminated.

    This implicit censure, however, contains a doctrinal error. It is
    perfectly legitimate, and in some cases even a duty, to die speaking
    the truth and denouncing the error of the enemies. The life and death
    of St. Babylas are important proofs of this. It is an eminent form of
    sanctity to damage the enemies of the Church and frighten the devils
    even after death.

    There are two grandiose scenes in this description of St. Babylas' =
    life.

    First, the encounter at the Cathedral door. One can imagine, on one
    hand, the Saint stands at the door, stern and indignant. He already
    knows about the crime of the Emperor, and firm and tranquil, he waits
    there. On the other hand, there is the Emperor, who approaches the
    Cathedral surrounded by sycophant courtesans. The Emperor mocks the
    Catholics and all the courtesans are laughing loudly. The Emperor is
    the highest authority on earth, and St. Babylas is a simple Bishop.
    But Babylas is more than Numerian, because he is a saint. The Emperor
    wants to enter, the saint forbids him, and the Emperor is stopped.
    What did he have that made him able to forbid the Emperor to enter? He
    had a thing that is much forgotten today, it is moral strength. His
    presence, his faith, his self-assurance stopped the Emperor from
    making the blasphemy he had planned.

    The second scene is after his death. The devil worshiped under the
    name of Apollo could not communicate with his followers any longer
    because that same moral presence of St. Babylas which had prevented
    the Emperor Numerian from entering the Cathedral was still present
    throughout the city of Antioch, not allowing the devil to give
    oracles. Now, another Emperor, Julian the Apostate, was rendered
    powerless before St. Babylas.

    The personality of St. Babylas was so great that both in his lifetime
    and after his death he was able to overwhelm the most powerful men on
    earth, as well as the devil in Hell.

    Let us ask St. Babylas to give us confidence and faith so that by our
    presence we can prevent the enemies of the Church from carrying out
    their blasphemous and idolatrous intents.

    See
    http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j058sdBabylas1-24.htm


    Quote:
    More and more as time went on did things turn into a battle between
    two opponents--those who would preserve intact the great structure of the
    old faith, its liturgy and morals and affirmation of doctrine--and those
    who would build up something quite new and different to act against it, to dethrone it, to take its place: and the Mass was the test."
    --Hilaire Belloc, Cranmer, 1931, pp. 60-61

    Bible Quote:
    12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart
    of wisdom.
    13 Return, O LORD! How long? Have pity on your servants!
    14 Satisfy us in the morning with your mercy, that we may
    rejoice and be glad all our days.
    15 Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us,
    and as many years as we have seen evil.
    16 Let your work be manifest to your servants,
    and your glorious power to their children.
    17 Let the favor of the LORD our God be upon us,
    and establish the work of our hands upon us, yes, establish
    the work of our hands.=C2 [Psalm 90: 12-17]


    <><><><>
    Saint Anthony, Zealous for Justice

    Dear St. Anthony, you were prompt to fulfill all justice.
    =C2 You gave God and His creation the service He required
    from you. You respected other people's rights and treated
    them with kindness and understanding. St. Anthony, Zealous
    for Justice, teach me the beauty of this virtue. Make me
    prompt to fulfill all justice toward God and toward all creation.
    =C2 Help me also in my pressing needs. (Name them.)

    --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
    * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)